SIEM in Cyber Security: The Best Tools for Threat Management

SIEM in cyber security comes as toolkits and complete solutions that provide a real-time look into how cyber threats affect your business’s operations. The solution is a combination of security event management and information management, with the application for multiple businesses in various industries. Several systems with SIEM capabilities are on the market, and most use network hardware and different apps to provide a more thorough analysis.

This article briefly analyses some popular SIEM vendors to understand better which security event manager might work best for your business. We will also cover why cybersecurity experts use them to improve their workflow and what we can expect for SIEM in the future!

What is SIEM, and why do cybersecurity experts use it?

SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) technology works for businesses of all sizes. It centralises company data to analyse system weaknesses and the source of a cyber attack and even protect IoT devices from malicious cybercrime.

SIEM solutions are used for threat analysis, and they are popular with cybersecurity experts because of their speed and ease of use. They are more of an all-in-one solution as they can analyse live data, detect potential threats, and even implement a robust solution to continue undisturbed business operations.

As with most technical solutions, SIEM software systems are a helpful addition to a cyber security expert’s toolkit, and they can make it a lot easier to secure company data. They are becoming more and more of a necessity, and the 24/7 surveillance they provide is invaluable, especially as cybercrime is enhanced with AI and made more accessible than ever.

However, the sword is only as mighty as the swordsman wielding it. This is why it is imperative to have an experienced cybersecurity team to manage the implementation of your SIEM software. If you want to learn more about the eight common application security mistakes that weaken modern businesses, check out our detailed guide on the topic. In the following subsections, we will look at some of the ways professional cybersecurity experts utilise SIEM :

Threat identification

Threat identification has always been a core component of cybersecurity professionals’ work duties. However, the scale of new threats and their attack patterns have mutated to a point where it is impossible to address the issue without the help of an additional tool.

SIEM implementation addresses this issue for multiple organisations by offering a fine-tuned solution for threat identification with real-time visibility. This helps improve operations within the organisation, helping with time management, data security, and strategic planning.

Modern SIEM platforms can actively scan, log and monitor all activity within an organisation, whether it is cloud-based or on-premises, to ensure the compliance requirements are met, and any potential cyber-attacks are identified at the earliest stage. The best tools in the industry are starting to implement AI in their processes to make threat identification and response systems faster and more on-point.

Improved incident response

After threats are identified with security analytics, SIEM products take the necessary steps to contain and eradicate them from a system. This process is known as incident response. Since security analysts can integrate the security management system with various third-party tools, SIEM solutions can collect threat-related data and respond to network security threats much faster than human staff.

There is a grave shortage of experienced cybersecurity experts in the market, and these easy-to-deploy tools can be an excellent alternative at a much-reduced cost.

Compliance reporting

Every business in every industry is bound by legal regulations and standards often overlooked by government officials or other regulatory bodies. SIEM systems can ensure that a company is not breaking any such role by generating compliance reports on network activity from multiple data sources.

Generally speaking, compliance reports demonstrate a company adheres to a set of industry standards, rules, regulations, and laws required by governments or regulatory bodies. This is particularly useful for companies operating under data security mandates like the GDPR or the EU.

With SIEM monitoring, cyber security teams can investigate any cases of compliance violations. In addition, modern variations of these tools incorporate a centralised approach to their compliance auditing and reporting process, which helps analyse system logs and security events with internal and external data to maximise results.

What are the best SIEM systems for threat management?

Splunk, Exabeam, Salesforce, ELK stack, and Solarwinds are some of the popular SIEM systems available for cybersecurity. These tools are excellent for real-time threat analysis, and while some suit the needs of smaller businesses best, others are ideal for larger enterprises.

Before we continue with a detailed analysis of the key features, it is essential to understand the difference between SIEM tools and SIEM solutions. While the latter covers a lot more ground and is the complete “solution,” SIEM tools are just an essential part of them.

By definition, SIEM works as a compliance solution that can involve different tools. These products work through security data from different network hardware, software, and apps, after which it centralises the data into a standard format. After this, the tool analyses the data, categorises it based on the events, generates alerts, and formats the final reports for the cybersecurity team.

Let us take a detailed look into some paid and open-source SIEM security tools used by security operations centres for managing the threat landscape faced by different firms:

Splunk SIEM

Splunk is one of the most popular solutions on the market, with its SIEM tools list incorporating enterprise and cloud security. However, while it offers actionable insights and advanced threat management capabilities, one downside is that you cannot integrate Splunk tools with other products.

These tools can work with machine data from internal or external sources, providing facilities like event sequencing and automated incident response. Additionally, with its robust systems with UEBA and SOAR capabilities and AI support, Splunk boasts an extra layer of efficient security.

The price tag is the main issue for some customers who believe that despite its excellent visualisations and security features, the tool is not ideal for small to midsize businesses. However, if you still want to take it for a spin, Splunk offers free trials on some of their tools!

Salesforce SIEM

As another fast and efficient variant that uses smart AI for enterprise security, Salesforce is the next contender on our list. Unlike Splunk, Salesforce can integrate with several external systems for event correlation, which can improve its threat analysis and security monitoring results.

Its threat detection can point out issues before their visibility impacts a client’s network. In addition, it can help arrange all security information in one workspace, including cyber threat logs and consumer data.

This can make it easier for the security team to pinpoint a more extensive range of issues with advanced threat detection, collaborate more efficiently and keep consumers in the loop with regular updates on digital channels. Salesforce will work well for customers and agents as it can identify and fix security much faster than other tools on the market!

Exabeam SIEM

The third item on our list is Exabeam which is made of several tools, including the Cloud Archive, the Incident Responder, the Case Manager, the Exabeam Cloud Connector, the Advanced and Entity Analytics, the Threat Hunter, and the Exabeam Data Lake.

Some excellent features that this tool boasts of with its cloud-native architecture are great behavioural analytics, improved data ingestion, and hyper-quick query performance. This puts it ahead of other tools in how it can better automate an analyst’s overall workflow.

You can co-deploy this Saas tool to support all aspects of your organisational operations as a complete bundle or individual products and enjoy its wide range of security features.

ELK Stack

The last item on our list is the ELK stack, which is much less powerful than the other tools that precede it. Its plus point, however, is that it is open-source, making it more accessible for smaller businesses with log management needs.

Also, like other popular open-source tools, the ELK stack has an excellent support community on online forums. Still, it is void of any real managed support or responsibility that could be required during emergencies.

While it does not have a range of other tools, like Splunk or Exabeam, it can perform exceptionally as a log management tool, making it an excellent choice for small-sized business owners who want to get a hold of their organisation’s security setup.

What is the future of SIEM?

SIEM systems undeniably give firms a lot of power to better secure their networks and data transmission channels with threat intelligence. However, it is time to update the structure of most tools and consider the AI, data management and machine learning innovations that are revolutionising the industry.

While traditional SIEM systems were initially an excellent information management solution for firms, most providers need to consider that modern businesses work with a lot of external data, especially when they have hybrid infrastructures or are connected to the cloud.

New SIEM systems must be more averse to dynamic threats as well, rather than sticking to restrictive duties like log monitoring and system alerts. It is also highly inconvenient for modern businesses to bear the high cost of some enterprise-level tools that are incomplete in their objective and leave the system at risk, even after they are implemented.

The good part, however, is that new SIEM systems have been brought into the market. The best thing about these tools is that they source external data and use several AI and ML techniques to respond more quickly. In addition, since they consider the data of several IT systems, it is easier for these tools to recognise new threats. If you want to learn about nine common cyber threats for online businesses, check out this detailed guide on the topic!

With careful consideration of the new AI innovations that cyber criminals use, modern SIEM systems can be adapted to the needs of the time and still prove their worth in the security industry.

Conclusion

With strict, predetermined rules, SIEM systems are a powerful enhancement for cybersecurity teams as they work on defining the cyber attacks endangering a business. Depending on the scale of your business operations, you can use one of the SIEM systems mentioned in this guide to protect your sensitive data.

If you’re interested in a career in cyber security, consider speaking with our team. You can book a free career consultation to discuss this further.